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# The concept of "wizardly ethics"

- Date: Fri, 23 Feb 1996 15:51:11 PST
- From:
- cc: boyken@cs.uiowa.edu
- Posted-Date: Fri, 23 Feb 1996 15:51:11 -0800 (PST)

    I have been in a recent argument with Karl Boyken (cc'd, because I
    don't know if he's on this list) about the concept of wizardly ethics.
    Many months ago, Karl attempted to force the LambdaMOO wizards to
    draft a "code of conduct" document.  (Me, I think that if someone
    wants some work done, they ought to at least volunteer to do it, and I
    was rather adamant on this point.)  Months later (after allowing his
    character to be reaped, and claiming that it was in part due to my
    refusal to draft this document---thanks for the guilt trip), he
    forwarded me a copy of "System Administrators' Guild Code of Ethical
    Conduct", below.  I don't want to argue in private, since many of his
    arguments have to do with the fact that it's a community issue (though
    I disagree), so there's not a whole lot of point to it.  So I'm
    putting his money where his mouth is by bringing it to moo-cows.
    Fortunately nothing in the code of conduct below says I have to be
    *nice*.  I'm acting in a belligerent manner by posting this message
    here and getting my opinion in first, and I'm doing it intentionally,
    because he pissed me off by sending mail to me on LambdaMOO as a
    guest.  I thought his action was inappropriate, and I think my action
    here is inappropriate.  But I'm doing it anyway, so there.
    Pthbthpthpt.

    My problem with a "wizardly code of conduct" is that Karl wants it to
    be global, like the hippocratic oath.  I don't think this makes sense.
    The only thing that MOO admins have in common is that they know how to
    use the commands "ftp" and "make".

    There's nothing to equate me with a college freshman whose sole goal
    in life is to hit on girls electronically.  This hypothetical freshman
    sets up a MOO and advertises it on the web.  He gets users and starts
    reading their mail.  Where is my involvement with that?  Karl seems to
    think I should have a *responsibility* to take this fellow to task, to
    censure him for violation of the Wizardly Code of Conduct.

    Frankly, I say "no."  If you come to my MOO, I will accord you a
    certain respect.  I have a fairly high standard for such things, and I
    would hope that people would believe me when I say so, and would act
    accordingly while on my MOO (e.g., feel comfortable storing private
    messages without fear of their being compromised.)  I do not see why
    my refusal to be a police force for the entire internet, searching out
    unethical MOO wizards and censuring them, should be a reason that you
    should not feel comfortable on *my* moo.  Certainly you should be wary
    on the hypothetical person above's moo.  But what has that to do with
    *me*?
    ----------------------
    [My comments in brackets.]

                    Proposed Code of Ethical Conduct for Wizards

    As a wizard, I will be guided by the following principles:

      1. Fair Treatment

         I will treat everyone fairly.  I will not discriminate against anyone on
         grounds such as age, disability, gender, sexual orientation, religion,
         race, or national origin.

    [I do this.  It's hard not to, on a MOO, since these factors are not
     visible.  I do discriminate on the basis of behavior, stupidity, and
     laziness.]

      2. Privacy

         I will access private information on computer systems only when it is
         necessary in the course of my duties.  I will maintain the
         confidentiality of any information to which I may have access.  I
         acknowledge statutory laws governing data privacy.

    [I certainly adhere to this.  Your mail is sacred.]

      3. Communication

         I will keep users informed about computing matters that may affect them,
         such as conditions of acceptable use, sharing of common resources,
         maintenance of security, occurrence of system monitoring, and any
         relevant legal obligations.

    [LambdaMOO has its various policies spelled out.]

      4. System Integrity

         I will strive to ensure the integrity of the systems for which I have
         responsibility, using all appropriate means, such as regularly
         maintaining software and hardware; analysing levels of system
         performance and activity; and, as far as possible, preventing
         unauthorised use or access.

    [I do my damnedest on this one.  We're up about 166 hours a week, and
     we spend an awful lot of time trying to fight lag.]

      5. Cooperation

         I will cooperate with and support my fellow computing professionals.  I
         acknowledge the community responsibility that is fundamental to the
         integrity of local, national, and international network resources.

    [Who are my "fellow computing professionals"?  I cooperate with those
     that cooperation is reasonable.]

    [But as above, I do *not* acknowledge community responsibility.]

      6. Honesty

         I will be honest about my competence and will seek help when necessary.
         When my professional advice is sought, I will be impartial.  I will
         avoid conflicts of interest; if they do arise I will declare them.

    [I'll let you all judge for yourself whether I'm competent.  Frankly,
     I think I'm quite good.]

      7. Education

         I will continue to update and enhance my technical knowledge and
         management skills by training, study, and the sharing of information
         and experiences with my fellow professionals.

    [Well, this is a little tough---there aren't any classes in moo code.
     I do share my knowledge, but as I have niether infinite time nor
     infinite patience, I must share it sparingly.  I write documentation
     though, which probably counts.]

      8. Social Responsibility

         I will continue to enlarge my understanding of the social and legal
         issues that arise in computing environments, and I will communicate
         that understanding to others when appropriate.  I will strive to ensure
         that policies and laws about computer systems are consistent with my
         ethical principles.

    [I called my representatives and whined about the CDA.  But I don't
     think this is necessarily relevant.]

      9. Workplace Quality

         I will strive to achieve and maintain a safe, healthy, productive
         workplace for all users.

    [This is forbidden to me as a LambdaMOO wizard---I would have to
     violate LTAND (lambdamoo takes a new direction) and toad some people
     in order to assure such a situation.  Even then it would be
     hard---since a lot of people MOO for recreation, and many of those
     MOO when they ought to be studying/working, it can be considered
     unhealthful for them to even *be* on the MOO---but I'm not going to
     shut it down just because someone is addicted.  Basically this point
     is just inappropriate for MOOs.]
    ---------------------------

    OK, you've heard me, I've basically agreed to his proposed code of
    conduct except for the part where I go beat up on the random freshman.
    Does that make it any different?  No.  You still either trust me or
    you don't.  Mr. Freshman might very well have typed "Yes", had the
    "make" script prompted him with "Do you agree to the above", just to
    get his moo running so he could get his mail spying activities
    started.  It still all comes down to "who do you trust."  If you don't
    trust an admin, don't keep private data there, and don't use the same
    password there as you do on other systems.

          Judy Anderson yclept yduJ          'yduJ' rhymes with 'fudge'
     yduJ@cs.stanford.edu (personal mail)   yduJ@harlequin.com (work-related)
    	Join the League for Programming Freedom, lpf@uunet.uu.net

Follow-Ups:

- An addendum

- From: Karl Boyken <boyken@cs.uiowa.edu>

- Re: The concept of "wizardly ethics"

- From: Brandon Gillespie <brandon@tombstone.sunrem.com>

- Re: The concept of "wizardly ethics"

- From: "George M. Ellenburg" <gme@nebula.ispace.com>

- Re: The concept of "wizardly ethics"

- From: Michael Brundage <anomaly@u.washington.edu>

- Re: The concept of "wizardly ethics"

- From: "Kenneth L. Bolton" <mistaken@aaln.org>

- ethics discussion

- From: Karl Boyken <boyken@cs.uiowa.edu>

- To Heck with ethics! (was Re: The concept of "wizardly ethics")

- From: tom@mvision.com (Tom Ritchford)

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